Expand your German vocabulary. Listen to German and read it as much as you can. This will increase your exposure to new words. Read and listen to a variety of media and subjects so that you will learn words across a wide spectrum. Focus on learning idioms and figures of speech in German. The BBC has a website to help improve your German at http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/german/. Listen to German news, and read German publications on the Internet. You can find German news, for example, to both listen to and read at ABYZ News Links.You can also find news stories written in German that is easy to understand on Deutsch Welle (see Resources).
Utilize a new German word or phrase each day. Practice using it at least once during the day. As a week progresses, try to use each word you have learned during the week at least once. For example, if you learn a new German word on Monday, you will practice using it Monday. When you learn a new word on Tuesday, you will use the word you learned on Monday in addition to your Tuesday word or phrase. This would continue throughout the week. Use the word or phrase each day in both speaking and writing.
Record yourself speaking, if possible. Play back your recordings each day to note your progress in using the new words, any new grammar you learn, and your pronunciation.
Join a free online language exchange. You will meet with a German speaker who wants to improve his English abilities from you. You will e-mail, and/or text/voice chat over the Internet. Meet at a regular time so that you will have to spend a regularly slotted amount of time speaking nothing but German. Ask your conversation partner to correct your German writing via e-mail. Some language exchanges include My Language Exchange and iTalki.
Attend German language classes, or hire a private German tutor. You may find German classes through your local German heritage or culture association, or you can join an online class. ITalki.com and BuddySchool.com allow you to choose from several different online German tutors that can design a custom course just for you, or who have classes online related to a specific aspect of German that you want to improve. Deutsche Welle offers various German courses as well.
Travel to Germany and participate in a language immersion program. This will force you to speak German on a regular basis over an extended period of time, and you will attend German language courses during your stay. You will speak German to navigate your daily life while you are there, and your fluency in the language will improve dramatically as a result. Some Language immersion programs include EuroLingua and Amerispan (see Resources).